By Sarah G. McC. Moïse
Staff Writer

Charleston’s most recent election last November resulted in new leadership with some fresh ideas and proposals. In this issue, the Business Journal has profiled each member of Charleston County Council to discuss the challenges of balancing economic growth and development, as well as to look at regional planning efforts, taxation and other topics.

Commercial and industrial permits by county during the first three quarters of 2004 show that Charleston County issued 169 commercial and industrial permits worth $175.8 million. Berkeley County issued 48 permits valued at just under $33 million, and Dorchester issued only 42 permits valued at $16.5 million. Charleston County Council has been behind many of the efforts and decisions to bring high-value businesses to the area.

“I support efforts to bring new high tech companies that are clean and environmentally friendly,” says Leon E. Stavrinakis, chairman of Charleston County Council. “Our governor has the right approach on trying to promote cluster development and offshoot expansion. Vought-Alenia will bring in new and long-term technology, and subcontractors are going to want to be near that production facility.”

Stavrinakis adds that having good infrastructure is a key part of the county’s attraction for new industry, as well as improving education and the housing situation in the Lowcountry.

New member Teddie Pryor says he would like to see more joint education and business programs like the successful curriculum at North Charleston High School, which has partnered with Career Pathway Finders. “The program nurtures (students) from ninth through 12th grades, and by the time they become a senior, they are ready to hit the workforce. It’s been an exceptional program. The technical school system needs to work with the local school district and school system to create more high tech training programs.”

Pryor is also concerned with the number of regulations and restrictions on small businesses, particularly on mom-and-pop establishments that support predominately local employees. “You have so many fees and taxes and business license requirements, plus property taxes, hazardous waste fees, the cost of office and furniture—I plan to alleviate some of those costs to attract more businesses to the area,” he says.

In a push to attract white-collar jobs, Timothy Scott, vice chairman of county council, has been working with the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce to promote a new initiative, the Charleston CEO Summit. “In 2005, we will have a CEO summit with 10 to 15 local CEOs to talk about business and how we can serve the community better. And hopefully in the fall of 2006, we will invite 50 to 100 CEOs from across the region to a large-scale event at The Sanctuary on Kiawah.”

Scott’s goal in promoting the summit is to showcase Charleston’s livability and quality of life and strong competent workforce to encourage CEOs to look at Charleston as a headquarters.

Regional cooperation

In recent years, economic development experts have demonstrated the benefits of regional collaboration over competition—what is good for Charleston is good for the whole state. That attitude, touted by Ed Morrison and Michael Porter in their synopses of state and local economic climate, is beginning to manifest itself in the Lowcountry as well. Growth in any of our three neighboring counties affects everyone, whether through increased jobs, infrastructure or construction.

However, members of Charleston County Council have some differences of opinion on the importance (or possibility) of regional cooperation in handling economic growth and development.

“We partner with all the different agencies in every way we can,” says Stavrinakis. “The new aeronautic facility involved work with the city of North Charleston, Charleston County, the state and our Aviation Authority.”

He adds that the county frequently coordinates use of accommodations fee money with the municipalities to help bring events or construct facilities that promote tourism and economic development and share the burden on projects designed to enhance the local economy and quality of life in Charleston—such as building the North Charleston Coliseum, the Family Circle Cup Tennis Stadium and the Charleston Museum.

The Charleston Regional Development Alliance also represents Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties. Its mission is to broaden and diversify business investment in this region, with a new emphasis on technology-intensive business sectors. Since its inception, the alliance has helped approximately150 companies find a new home or expand their operations here.

“For the last several years, Charleston County has provided 50 percent of the government side of the funding for the Regional Development Alliance, and we have done so because we felt like it was our responsibility and our opportunity,” says Scott. As both Berkeley and Dorchester counties begin to contribute more, he sees an opportunity in the years to come for everyone to come to the table.

The Charleston-Berkeley-Dorchester Council of Governments encompasses all three counties and has stood at the forefront of transportation and road needs in the tri-county area. “We try our best to be sensitive to their recommendations,” says Scott.

However, Councilman Curtis Inabinett says there are areas where county council can do a better job working with neighboring municipalities.

“There are a number of areas where we need to start sitting down with our neighbors and talking. You look at the crime rate and you look at the overcrowded conditions in our jails and youth detention centers, and that’s a real problem that doesn’t stop at the county or city lines,” Inabinett says. “It’s extremely important that we start communicating with other neighboring governmental entities, because the growth in one county in one way or another affects all of us.”

He doesn’t think Charleston County is working as comprehensively as it should on a number of issues, including CARTA, the Rural Transportation Authority and other transportation issues. “Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties are in close proximity and the traffic impacting our roads and highways is becoming more and more of a concern. We are going to have to look regionally at transportation.”

As far as development, Councilman Ed Fava thinks government should chiefly be about assessing its own turf and providing a structure for its own people. “Our first efforts have been to have our comprehensive land use plan be accepted by and consistent with the municipalities in our own county. And it’s not just Charleston, North Charleston and Mount Pleasant—we’ve also got Seabrook and Hollywood, Ravenel, Meggett, Kiawah and others to consider.”

But Fava agrees that Charleston County should not ignore its neighbors. “I think we’ll see increased emphasis in that direction with the revenues we’re getting from the half-penny sales tax. After all, it doesn’t do a lot of good to widen a highway to three lanes and have it drop back to two lanes at the next county,” he says.

Fava says that regional planning could create consistency between Charleston County’s comprehensive plans and plans of neighboring counties.

Councilman Joey Douan, whose council seat is still pending the outcome of a new election, is the lone voice of dissention on county council concerning regional communication. “I am categorically opposed to regional planning and regional government. Only the county knows the best deal for the area.”

He cites Portland, Ore. as an example of failed cooperation. “They had that plan 30 years ago, and it’s taken them until this year to finally throw out ‘smart growth.’ Nothing good comes out of regional planning and regional government. All you get is more bureaucracy. It’s not American. The government smallest and closest to the people is the best government.”

While the majority of council members see the benefit in regional cooperation, some are not so sanguine about the probability of it. 

“I’m not sure that simply communicating accomplishes the goal of regional planning,” says Councilman Curtis Bostic, who says that every county has different emphasis on how its growth should be developed. “I don’t see land use as being fungible; it’s unique in infrastructure needs, space, roads, power, etc. I’m not even really sure if we can come together in a clear way regionally so that everyone is on the same board for how to make the region work—I’m not sure it’s possible.”

“Unfortunately what I’ve found in any joint effort is that when it benefits one county tremendously, they are very interested. But they are less interested when the benefit is not as great for them as it is to another county,” says Councilman Dr. Charles Wallace. “That’s natural, and I think we need to continue to work at it. In the future, there has got to be closer cooperation for infrastructure and growth among adjoining counties.”

Balancing growth through planning

Civic leaders typically welcome economic development, but the county council is also charged with keeping unplanned growth from compromising the way of life that makes the tri-county region such a popular place to live, work and retire.

The most recent data available shows that Charleston County issued more than 2,560 building permits in just the first three quarters of 2004—roughly 600 more than Berkeley and 100 more than Dorchester. According to the Berkeley-Charleston Dorchester Council of Governments, the construction value of those permits in Charleston County ($596,962,166) was more than both Dorchester and Berkeley counties combined during the same time period. Most of the population growth in the county appears to be happening on the outskirts of the county, in Awendaw, Hollywood, Kiawah Island, North Charleston, Summerville and Mount Pleasant.

Scott says that the county’s comprehensive land use plan provides a strong sense of vision for growing the community and maintaining quality of life. “It has lowered the density in the rural areas and planned for higher density in the urban areas. At the same time, the rural landscape and farming culture need to be protected as well. In the last four or five years, we have gone a long way in reducing density in areas where the population is very sparse, such as Wadmalaw and Johns Island. The current zoning goes far enough in my opinion.”

Charleston County Council frequently works with developers to encourage higher density development and decrease strain on infrastructure. An example of this is Carolina Park, a residential and commercial development off Highway 17. “One of the things about Carolina Park that made sense for the county and not for Mount Pleasant was that it is a self-contained community,” says Stavrinakis. “You can live, work, play and go to school without getting on Hwy. 17.”

“Where we can encourage mixed-use (developments), we do. It isn’t going to work everywhere. We encourage it through incentives rather than just require it, or we’d end up with people annexing into other jurisdictions that don’t require it,” he adds,

County council regularly invites members of the construction and real estate community to participate in planning decisions. The Charleston Trident Home Builders Association is regularly in touch with council about construction issues such as water lines, building codes and how the planning department receives and dispatches permits. The Board of Realtors also regularly has tax and zoning matters they raise with County Council.

Bostic says one of the best things the council has accomplished in recent years is the effort it has put into land development contracts, where contractors are permitted to develop, provided that they put in roads and contribute certain lands to be used by the community for schools and green space.

“It shifts the burden to the developer over time and paces infrastructure needs with actual construction,” he said.

Douan is adamant that zoning restrictions have opposite the desired effect on county growth. “Rural zoning for decreased density has put government in the business of rationing land, which is what drives projects like Poplar Grove and artificially increases the value of land in Charleston County. I think we should change the density to a fair number—one house per acre—which will immediately eliminate the threat of sprawl,” he says.

He also maintains that the exclusion of new economic development in the rural parts of Charleston County is unfair. “A lot of people can’t have that dream of being self-employed or owning a small business. But if you’re a big developer like Carolina Park, you can get by the rules by doing a (Planned Unit Development) or mixed-use development. I would change the zoning and fairness opportunity for small businesses and property owners.”

The comprehensive land use plan is updated every other year and is currently under review. County council strongly encourages citizens to provide input by attending council meetings or serving on one the boards, such as the board of zoning appeals.

“It’s very important to continue to respond as the dynamics change within our county. We don’t know where changes will be coming, how the needs of our constituents and infrastructure will change, so it is important to consistently update our plan and have it be model for good growth,” Bostic says.

Transportation, taxation 

While county council doesn’t control the growth that goes on within the cities of Charleston, North Charleston and the town of Mount Pleasant, it works with the different municipalities to get consensus on the comprehensive land use plan.

“We work together to decide which roads we need to build or widen; where to have green space and open space. All of that is the master plan for the future of Charleston County,” says Fava, who served as county administrator for over a decade before joining the council in 2003.

“The voter-approved, half-penny sales tax is going to be a big factor in balancing economic growth and development. The revenues to be collected are to be used to help our regional bus system, transportation and roads, drainage and open space.”

Last year, Charleston County voters approved a half-cent sales tax to generate revenue for transportation-related projects, such as addressing the area’s overcrowded roads and building new bridges, as well as for greenbelts, including parks and preserving dwindling rural lands. The county’s sales tax will rise to 6.5% this year, and remain in effect for 25 years or until it raises $1.3 billion.

The tax is expected to cover the county’s $75 million share of building the new Cooper River bridge, a decision that many members of Charleston County Council disagreed with, but were forced to comply.

“It would appear that the members of General Assembly are passing a lot of their responsibilities to local government,” says Wallace. “The state highways and bridges are really the state’s responsibility, but the state highway department has been under-funded for many years. If we wanted any improvements, we would have to find the money locally. The half-cent sales tax was the only way our citizens could chip in, in a meaningful way. Now County Council has to make sure we spend those monies wisely.”

Opponents criticized county officials for not identifying how and what other projects might be funded by the tax. For instance, the tax is also needed to keep the Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority running a public bus service in the area.

“The half-cent sales tax has no accountability for where the money is going to and what it will be used for,” says Douan. “The CARTA Board is appointed, not elected. So they are spending $170,000 to $180,000 a week and you can’t even vote them out of office. I’m not trying to stop the buses—they’re there for people who cannot provide for themselves—but we need a better system of accountability.”

He says that state law for a sales tax mandates that every cent be accounted for before being put to a vote. “Raising taxes is just foolish, but if people vote to do it, we should have accountability in place. Instead the council just says, ‘Trust us.’ I say let the county take over the operation of the mass transit system, so if the citizens don’t like what we’re doing, they can vote us out of office.”

Ameliorating the overcrowded jail conditions is another situation in which county council will need to allocate funds.

 “The county jail has been overcrowded since it was first opened. It was built roughly for 700 and it is holding 1,400. It needs to be enlarged and I support doing that, but it is going to be terribly expensive to build and operate,” Wallace says. “As a steward of the public’s money, I don’t want to build an addition that is just going to be overcrowded the day that it opens. Before we sign on the dotted line, all parties involved need to agree that no more than the allowed number will ever be put in that jail,” he adds.

High school teacher Henry Darby was elected to county council this year and plans to focus on the needs of Charleston’s poorer communities. “I need to get in touch with the economists from the Citadel and the College of Charleston to find how one can create money for the dilapidated black and poor white communities.”

Darby would like to see fewer people actually entering the county’s overcrowded jail. He estimates that as many as 35% to 40% of the black community is unemployed, especially among the 17- to 20-year-olds.

Darby says, “Banks and industrial leaders and contractors need to do more for these communities, to make the citizens economically empowered and make a difference in the businesses in our area. Developers must give persons with low skills an opportunity to work, because it increases the gross product of the entire county.”

Sarah Moïse is a staff writer for the Business Journal. E-mail her at smoise@crbj.com.

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